Hello and welcome. For those already familiar with my personality, you may be aware that I am a thinker.

I typically give a lot of consideration to most things, whether it is something as basic as cooking a meal or as life-changing as overhauling my career. Admittedly, the decision to go into consulting was a long time coming but not without a rigorous internal vetting process (yes- that means with myself).

I have been fortunate over the past two years to work directly with senior service providers keeping them informed of regulatory changes and advocating on their behalf with the Washington State Legislature. What resonates the most for me from this experience is the day-to-day tasks related to delivering quality care to vulnerable elderly populations. These responsibilities are DAUNTING. It is more than a full-time job and it requires tons of internal focus just to handle the daily details.

At the same time, the volume and speed of changes in state and federal requirements are overwhelming. CEOs, Administrators, CFOs, and Directors of Nursing are inundated regularly with new and complicated regulations and fiscal constraints. The last thing many of these very hard working individuals have the capacity to do, is revamp an entire business model that has been in operation for 20 years (or more). Yet, this regulatory pace is not expected to change anytime soon as government entities grapple with how to balance their budgets and accommodate the exponential service needs for a generation of baby boomers entering the golden years.

I understand why some might feel safer hiring from within to provide the services I offer. Alternatively, there is contracting with one of the gigantic national or international firms who can pay up-the-nose for expertise outside their fundamental scope of work. I get it. Using a known entity can minimize risks (real or perceived), as well as upfront time and costs. But the reality is the long term care and senior services market is beginning to change. In order to survive and thrive, providers need to be more externally focused.

Internal versus external focus is the difference between making and “maintaining incremental improvements of the current system versus transformation of the current system to a new, more optimal system” (Martin, Roger L. & Sally R. Osberg, Getting Beyond Better).

So what might be saved in hiring a known entity, may, in the end, result in the cost of not having a new and fresh perspective to help you prepare for a constantly evolving external market. It is well known that even corporate giants fail if they cannot accommodate pivotal evolutions in the market. In this environment thinking outside the box is critical. I am committed to applying my energy, background, and skill set to help you do just that so you don’t have to lose sight of the reason you entered this business in the first place—to help our seniors.

For more information, please visit our website.

#seniorserviceproviders #longtermcare #healthcarereform #consulting #transformation